ExperienceFountainHills.org Enjoy small town charm within the Greater Phoenix Metro Area. Close proximity to: • Outstanding health, wellness, and outdoor recreation opportunities • Six of Arizona’s finest 18-hole public golf courses • Scenic vistas, hiking/biking trails • Saguaro Lake and Canyon Lake • We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort • Unique art, music and cultural festivals • Many distinct dining experiences FOUNTAIN HILLS WELCOMES CANADIAN VISITORS! Gardening by Judith Adam Low-stress watering All living things require adequate water on a regular schedule – people, dogs, cats, and gardens. Health suffers without sufficient water, appearances change and unattractive signs of deprivation set in. If you’re less than attentive to a regular watering schedule, it could be because of the inevitable fight with the garden hose. The kinks, knots, refusal to unbend and straighten out, the leaking connections – it can be a miserable experience repeated weekly until you begin avoiding the whole thing. Watering solutions come in the form of newly designed equipment that is effective and specific to various applications, and doesn’t require professional installation. What’s more, once set up in your garden, it does most of the work for you. If you can turn on the main water spigot, that’s the total of your necessary effort. Smart watering keeps the water delivery close as possible to the plant root zone. When water is hurled 10 feet into the air by an oscillator or sprayer, as much as half of the moisture is lost to evaporation. We’re all familiar with the luxury of in-ground lawn irrigation that delivers water at ground level. But lawn irrigation isn’t sufficient for yew and cedar hedges. And what about the patio containers that seemed a good idea in spring when box plants beckoned, but now require daily watering through the heat of summer? Home garden irrigation kits designed for a variety of growing situations are the answer. Do-it-yourself irrigation kits feature many customized applications – soaker hoses (both above and in-ground), spaghetti lines, adjustable dribblers, and equipment for raised locations such as decks. Commercial growers have used shrubbler devices for many years, and they are now a standard in home garden irrigation kits. The shrubblers allow water delivery to individual plants and can be adjusted to deliver a slow drip or enough water to cover a 36-in diameter circle. Multiple shrubblers throughout the garden are each customized to the location, and the whole string of devices operates simultaneously. Youmay be familiar with the many forms and concepts for drip systems, but also consider irrigation devices specifically designed for raised beds, row vegetable gardens, perennial borders, deck gardens, fence mounts and tree irrigators. Depending on your garden’s particular needs, more than one irrigation system can be installed and controlled by a switch regulator at the spigot end. You need only switch the water feed to the designated irrigation line and feel secure that valuable plants are getting exactly the amount of water which they need to flourish. No more weekly hose dragging! CSANews | WINTER 2021 | 45
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzMzNzMx